Thank You For Caring
by NovalleNation
Summary: The Joker has went too far this time and Harley escapes to find comfort from... The Riddler?


**Hiya, everyone! I know, I know, I gotta stop procrastinating with all these other stories and get back to **_**"Partners or Lovers?" **_**and **_**"Emotion Sickness Again?" **_**I **_**swear **_**on the life of fanfictions and role-playing that I will continue them! Speaking of RP, if you guys ever wanna RP my kik is **_**Gothamsharlequin**_** and my Instagram is **_** . **_** ! Anyways, to the story! :3333**

Here she was again. Joker had definitely gone too far this time and slashed Harley's body just about everywhere. Her chest, legs, stomach, back, and even her neck. She had been falsely led to believe that they were going to have a romantic night together so she showed up in front of him with a red and black lingerie and that gave him the perfect opportunity to completely destroy her body and _not _in the way she was hoping. About an hour after his horrible acts, he had fallen asleep. Harley quickly took the chance to get out of there, not even bothering to take her stuff.

She walked down the cold streets of Gotham City and glanced at Ivy's green house. _No. _Ivy absolutely despised her after an incident with her hyenas. Harley continued walking and eventually came upon Riddler's lair. She knew it was his because of the green question marks spray-painted on the door. Then she frowned slightly as she tried to decide if she should risk it or not. Eddie has always been a good friend, but she caught him staring at her a few times in Arkham. Harley winced as she felt a rain drop hit one of her many open cuts and instantly made up her mind. She walked up to his door and knocked as memories from an hour ago began flooding her mind. Her thoughts were interrupted when Riddler opened the door, still in his pajamas and rubbing his tired eyes.

She struggled to hold back the tears in her sapphire blue eyes as he spoke "Miss Quinn, what are you doing here? It's two in the morning and-"

He immediately stopped talking when he noticed the fresh cuts and bruises on her pale skin. With a disappointed sigh, he reached out to grab her hand and frowned when she winced, fearing he would harm her. "That man is destroying you, Harley." He muttered under his breath as he gently grabbed her hand and pulled her inside.

Riddler looked her in the eye and spoke in a soft but strict tone "Stay here, I'll be right back, okay?" She nodded in response as he walked into the kitchen.

Harley began to think about why she even loved the Joker. She remembered when she was his psychiatrist and smiled slightly as the amazing memories came back to her. He told her things he never told anyone else before and it made her feel special. Not only that, but he was the one guy who listened to her problems, he was her _friend._ Or maybe that's exactly what he wanted her to think. Finally realization hit her and she began to let her tears fall as Eddie walked back into the room with a first-aid kit.

"Miss Quinn?" He asked, an obvious note of concern in his voice. She didn't dare to look him in the eyes as she spoke.

"He never really loved me, did he?"

Riddler just stood there silently as he stared at her. He wasn't sure if the question was for him or herself. Eddie definitely knew that the Joker would never love anybody but himself but he didn't want to just tell her that. He knew that it would hurt her very badly if he just admitted it. After a few seconds, Riddler decided to speak up in an attempt to help her.

"I'm not sure, Miss Quinzel." Harley looked up at him with a great amount of pain in her watery eyes, her eye-makeup running down her face from the tears.

"Call me Harley, everyone does." Harley faked a smile and laughed a laugh that even a stranger would know is not her true laugh. Riddler opened his mouth to say something, but when he noticed the cuts on her skin again, he decided to focus on her emotional pain later.

"Come on, Harley. Let's get you fixed up." He led her over to the sofa and helped her to sit down. Eddie decided to sit on the ground since Harley got comfortable and laid down on the sofa. Once he began to open the first-aid kit Harley asked him another question.

"Did I let my love for him blind me from all the crap he did to me?"

Oh God, that was the easiest question in the whole world to answer. But once again, he found that he couldn't answer it directly. "Maybe, Harley. Again, I'm not entirely sure."

Before he could even pick up a band-aid, she snapped a him "Yes, you _are_ sure! You _know _that he hates me! You always _have_! It's true, ain't it? He hates me more than B-man himself!"

Eddie found himself at a loss of words once again. She was really having a rough time with this and he shouldn't have been surprised. Harley wasn't only in love with the guy, she was totally _obsessed._ It was gonna be hard making her feel better. What was something that she loved almost as much as the Joker? He mentally snapped his fingers as he came up with an idea.

"Knock, knock."

Harley looked at him with wide and confused eyes as she went along with it.

"Who's there?"

"Dwayne."

"Dwayne who?"

"Dwayne the bathtub, I'm drowning!"

She couldn't help but let out a small giggle at the cheesiness of the joke and for the first time that day, she smiled. "Wow, where did you learn that one, Riddles?"

He let out a soft chuckle and responded in a calm voice "When I was little I used to love jokes and of course I also loved books. So, I put the two together and I read some joke books."

Harley bit her lip when he suddenly pressed the piece of cloth with peroxide on it onto one of her many cuts. "You sure like to read, don't you?"

"Yes, that's how I know so much."

Harley frowned and twirled one of her pigtails around her finger "I guess I should read '_Love For Dummies'_ then."

Riddler shook his head as he treated the other cuts. "Oh no, you certainly know how to love, Harley. You just need to know _who _you should love. Unfortunately for you, your heart is out on your sleeve."

Harley sighed after listening to him but a few seconds after a wide smile began to grow on her face. Eddie had been the one listening to her problems lately. He wasn't trying to manipulate her or anything. Apparently it's a pretty simple thing to do, too. He could've just straight-up told her that Joker hated her and she would've fell into his arms like that. But he didn't want to hurt her feelings, and that meant something to her. That means that, for once in her life, a man truly cared about her. Even if the feelings weren't romantic she still had somebody to depend on. He didn't view her as just a body or a doll. Eddie saw her as a _person _and that meant the world to her.

She giggled in delight, confusing Riddler but confusing him even further when she leaned in and kissed his cheek, then gave him a hug. Harley held onto him like her life depended on it which, in a way, it did. It felt to her as if she were to let go, he would disappear forever. After a few seconds Harley whispered to him in a soft voice.

"Thank you for caring." He smiled warmly and hugged her back just as tightly like if he were to let go she'd go right back to Joker which, unfortunately, would probably happen eventually.

"Of course, Harley."

** END**

** I hope you all enjoyed this! I wrote it at 3:30 am so please don't judge it too hard. This isn't my OTP or anything of course that will always be Harley/Joker. But I just thought about it and I realized how lonely Riddler really is but yet he seems like such a nice guy when he's not taking hostages and stuff. I feel as if Riddler would just be satisfied with her company and Harley could go to him for the love Joker may not express to her all the time. **


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